The invention relates to a treatment element, in particular for use with a dental-implant part anchored in a patient's jawbone. It also relates to a treatment system with such a treatment element as well as to a method for cleaning a dental-implant part.
To compensate for the loss of a tooth, dental implants can be used within the framework of a reconstructive therapy. Usually, they are inserted into the jawbone in the place of an extracted or shed tooth, in order to fix there, after a healing-in phase of about four to twelve weeks, a prosthetic part or a crown serving as a denture piece. For this purpose, such a dental implant is usually designed as a suitably shaped metallic body, which is inserted in the intended place in the jawbone by screwing it in. As a rule, the apical end of the dental implant is provided with a screw thread, mostly a self-cutting screw thread, with which the dental implant is inserted into the correspondingly prepared implant bed.
In view of the meanwhile relatively high number of implants inserted into the human body, in particular in the dental area, and their relatively long duration of use, it has been noted that the occurrence of biofilm-associated inflammation statuses of the periimplantary tissue is constantly increasing. On the solid surface of the implant, enclosed by tissue and tissue liquid, a biofilm develops, which is colonized by bacteria which may finally lead to chronic and recurrent infections. This syndrome is called periimplantitis. In particular in the dental area, similar to parodontitis, a combination of neglected mouth hygiene, adhesion of a biofilm on the usually microrough surface of the post part, and other factors lead to the full picture of periimplantitis, which is characterized by an increasing charge and destruction of the hard and soft tissues. The areas where the hard and/or soft tissues retreat are usually covered by a biofilm.
Both with and without treatment, a progressing of the periimplantary inflammation may lead to loss of the implant and deterioration of the tissue of the body or bone in the area of the anchoring spot. Therefore, it is desirable to initiate suitable countermeasures as soon as possible after discovering such an inflammation. These measures may range from an optimization of mouth hygiene to therapeutical interventions in the form of surgical measures, i.e. removal of the afflicted implant and new insertion of a replacement implant. However, in particular the last-mentioned measure is a great burden for the tissue as a whole and often entails a massive reduction of tissue in the environment of the place of insertion. Therefore, it is highly desirable to find alternative efficient measures for combating an existing or beginning periimplantitis.